Be honest, be the best!

“Have the courage to say no. Have the courage to face the truth. Do the right thing because it is right. These are the magic keys to living your life with integrity.”

- W. Clement Stone

The following story best illustrates this…

A successful business man was growing old and it was the time to choose a successor to take over the business. He could have chosen someone from the board of directors or from his own family, rather, he decided to do something different.


He called all the young executives of his company and said, “It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO. I will choose one of you.” All the executives were shocked to hear that.


The CEO then gave a seed to all the executives and said, “This is a very special seed. Plant this seed and water it daily. Come back a year later with what you have grown from this seed. I will judge all that you bring and based on that I will choose the next CEO of this company.”


Among the executives was a person named Jim. Even he received a seed. Excited, Jim went home that day and told the whole story to his wife. She then helped him to get a pot, soil and compost and they planted the seed. Everyday Jim watered the seed and watched to see if it had grown.


Days passed by but still there was nothing in Jim’s pot. The other executives in the office talked about little green leaves that had started to show from the seed. Jim kept checking his pot but nothing ever grew. This didn’t stop him and he continued to fertilize and water the seed but felt like a failure.


A year went by and the big day was announced. All the executives were called for the inspection. Jim felt sick to even face the CEO but his wife encouraged him to be honest and tell his boss about what had happened. Jim’s pot was empty compared to the variety of plants his colleagues had brought. They were beautiful- of all shapes and sizes.


The CEO arrived and was enthralled to see the range of plants. He said, “Today, one of you must be announced the CEO of this company.” Eyes sparkled as they keenly waited to hear the fortunate name.


All of a sudden, the CEO located Jim standing in the corner of the room with his empty pot. He called him in the front. Jim was terrified.


“Why is this pot empty and where is your plant?” asked the CEO. Jim told him the whole story.


The CEO asked all others to sit except Jim. He looked at Jim and then announced to the others, “Behold your next Chief Executive! His name is Jim!


Jim was shocked as were the other executives.


The CEO said, “A year ago, I had given you all a seed and asked you to plant it and water it daily. All of you have brought me stunning plants except Jim. The seed, which I had given you was boiled, a dead seed, which was not possible to grow. You all replaced my seed with another one but Jim was true to his heart and had the courage and honesty to bring me an empty pot with my seed in it.” He is the one who deserves to be the next CEO of this company!


What people do at work and how they handle their job determine their aspirations and outlook towards work. Without honesty and courage, a business can never be successful. Have the courage to speak up and speak the truth. A person needs to have strong work ethics and integrity to rise high.